This week’s Drag Race video features a half mile drag race between a pair of 5th gen Camaros – one being a ZL1 with the supercharged LTA V8 and the other being an SS with the LS3 engine.
We don’t know what kind of modifications (if any) have been done to these Camaro coupes, but we know that in base form, the ZL1 makes 580 horsepower while the Camaro SS makes “just” 426 hp.
Based on that, you can probably predict the outcome, but this video offers an interesting chance to see just how much faster the ZL1 is in a half mile drag race.
When the race first begins, the silver Camaro SS is relatively close to the Camaro ZL1, but by the time the 580 hp muscle car has gotten to the location of the cameraman, we can see that the supercharged Chevy has pulled out to a huge lead over the Camaro SS.
It actually looks as though the Camaro SS closed the gap a bit on the top end, but the ZL1 still hands out a pretty lengthy beating.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
